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<\/figure>\n\n\n\nBut a lightning rod of sorts for an industrial renaissance\nor revolution is in the offing. It is not led by government that seems never\nable to get its act together, instead by a private initiative and funding.\nEnter The Dangote Refinery and Petrochemical Plant started six years ago and is\n85 to 90 percent complete. It comprises a mega size oil refinery, fertilizer\nand petrochemical plants all three assembled in one vast location. Isn\u2019t the\neconomy set to get a boost? What better way to become self-sufficient in\nrefining, fertilizer and petrochemical production than to have three strategic\nareas rising simultaneously from the ashes like a phoenix? The multiplier effect\nis beyond comprehension.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For Aliko Dangote, the promoter and financier of the\nmultibillion dollar complex, it appears it might just be merely a matter of\nhabit to continue to invest in a country whose political leaders revel in\nincompetence and whose allegiance is to their personal or group interests\nrather than progressing the big picture of developing the country. Despite the\nperception in some quarters of Dangote as an artful player of any government in\npower, his default tendency has been to keep expanding the frontiers of his\nbusiness empire. He did this with his daring venture into cement production.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Armed with concessions from a government that understood how\ncentral local production is to the nation\u2019s economic progress \u2013 the backward\nintegration policy has paid off handsomely and the country has moved from a net\nimporter of cement to producing all its cement needs and surplus for export.\nThis has conserved Nigeria\u2019s foreign exchange reserves and stabilised the\nprices of cement. Imagine for a moment what would have happened to our foreign\nreserves and the prices of cement if we were still importing it, at a time like\nthis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A recent plea by Alhaji Ahmed Joda to our leaders captures\nwhat Nigeria should be doing to move the country forward instead of the\noverdependence on foreign investors. His stark warning? No Foreign Direct\nInvestment (FDI) has ever taken any country out of poverty. Joda hailed Dangote\nfor his dedication to Nigeria\u2019s development, saying if the country could have\nmore people like him, Nigeria would be a better place. \u201cIn short, I always say,\ncreate 10 to 15 Dangotes and see what will happen in our country,\u201d he stated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He recalled that before Dangote ventured into the cement\nbusiness, the two biggest cement companies in the world were operating small\nplants, with the biggest at the time doing about 300,000 MT per annum in\nNigeria. The two companies were Blue Circle (UK) and Lafarge (France), which\nlater merged. Joda stated that the companies were producing only small\nquantities of cement in Nigeria and preferred to flood the country with cement\nfrom all over the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He posited further and I agree that Dangote saw the\nopportunity that the foreigners knew, but was not in their interest to take\nbecause they don\u2019t care about Nigeria, and he took it. He pointed out that\nDangote decided to increase the capacity of the cement plant he bought to\n2,000,000 MT per annum. Thereafter, he built a new plant (Obajana) with initial\ncapacity of 5,000,000 MT per annum, expanded it to 10,000,000MT per annum, and\nother companies had no choice but to follow suit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He commended Dangote for building one of the largest oil\nrefineries in the world in Nigeria, whereas the multinational oil companies\nthat have been operating in Nigeria for more than 60 years never deemed it fit\nto build a refinery (except the 60,000 barrels per day refinery in Port\nHarcourt by Shell built in the 60s). Instead, for selfish reasons, they take\nthe crude oil to the refineries around the world, refine it and then, sell it\nback to us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n By far, Dangote\u2019s most audacious and formidable venture yet\nis the Dangote Refinery and Petrochemical Plant. A gigantic undertaking that\ntrumps all others. It is perhaps the most significant, breathtaking investment\nundertaken by one man in his quest to harness the vast potential in Nigeria and\nchange the narrative of this country, nay Africa for good. It is a story of\nrugged individualism amid policy inconsistency in Nigeria. And the two pull in\nopposite directions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Clearly, this is not a project for the faint-hearted, it is\nsimply beyond the scope and capacity of many countries. It is the kind of\nmammoth undertaking that big developed countries or major multinational oil\ncompanies dare to venture into. This is what one man is single-handedly\nbuilding and is nearing completion. Who says dreams can\u2019t come true in Africa?\nDangote has gone this far despite the headwinds from volatile economic\nrealities, including repeated devaluation of the Naira which made borrowing\ncost higher and the seeming lack of support from government.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The plant will be a game changer for the Nigerian economy\nwhich is seriously gasping for breath. It will rewrite the story of our country\nand make every Nigerian proud and most importantly, sound the death knell for\nthe criminality that has bedeviled the importation of refined petroleum\nproducts. I have written several articles on precisely the blind stealing and\nindefensible corruption in the oil sector, viz. the unbelievable fraud in the\nsubsidy regime, the massive theft and round-tripping that has gone on for too\nmany years without abatement and the never-ending turnaround of our obsolete\nrefineries without results. The unexplained quadruple increase in the volume of\npetrol consumed daily has provided a coterie of local and international\nswindlers with riches far beyond their wildest imaginations. But the end is\nnigh! This refinery, which will soon be operational, will reveal Nigeria\u2019s true\ndaily consumption of all petroleum products and expose the humongous stealing\nthat has gone on in the past several years. The plant when completed, can meet\n100 per cent of Nigeria\u2019s requirement of all liquid products. These include\ngasoline, diesel, kerosene, aviation jet fuel and fuel oils, and also would\nhave surplus of each of these products for export.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In all, a total of $12 billion investment had been estimated\nby the Dangote Group to have been committed to the project. The refinery is\nexpected to create a market of $11 billion per annum for Nigerian crude. It has\nbeen designed for 100 per cent Nigerian crude grades, with flexibility to\nprocess others which include all the African crude grades, a range of Middle\nEastern crude grades and those from the United States. In a recent\npresentation, the Group Executive Director of the Dangote Refinery and\nPetrochemical Plant, Mr. Devakumar Edwin, pointed out that the project remains\nthe largest single train petroleum refinery in the world, with a capacity of\n650,000 barrels per day and 838 KTPA polypropylene plants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When completed, Edwin added that the plant would encompass\nthe world\u2019s biggest fertilizer plant with a capacity of 3 million tons per\nannum; the largest sub-sea pipeline infrastructure in any country in the world\nspanning 1,100 kilometres, to handle 3 billion standard cubic feet (SCF) of gas\nper day. In that presentation, he also revealed that the facility would have\nworld-scale gas treatment stations; a world-class petrochemical complex; and a\n480MW power plant in the refinery and fertilizer complex.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The plant will maximise gasoline which is in high demand \u2013\n53 per cent of the production capacity compared to 22 per cent of the existing\nrefineries in Nigeria. It would also help maximise value added petrochemicals\npolypropylene and polyethylene; and minimise low-value fuel oils. Another benefit\nof the refinery and petrochemical plant to the Nigerian economy is in the area\nof job creation as over 100,000 indirect jobs through retail outlets would be\ncreated as there are 26,716 filling stations and 129 depots in Nigeria; it\nwould bring about ease of availability of products and help open up service\nstations; and 2,600 trucks for transport would create additional jobs.\nCurrently, there are about 3,580 Nigerian personnel at the site. This excludes\nemployment by the various contractors and sub-contractors at the site.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The challenge of skills gap which has over the years stunted\ngrowth in the oil and gas industry, is one that the Dangote Petrochemical\nRefinery is expected to address by providing a platform for overseas specialist\ntraining. Not to be caught napping, the training of the first and second batch\nof engineers has been completed and they are being acclimatised at the site,\nwhile the third batch has left for India for training.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Edwin further disclosed that the Dangote Group bought 300\ncranes to ramp up equipment installation capacity, since the current capacity\nin Nigeria is extremely low and presently has the world\u2019s largest granite\nquarry to supply coarse aggregate, stone column material, stone base, stone\ndust & material for break water. It also bought over 750 equipment to\nenhance the local capacity for site works, since even Julius Berger, Dantata\n& Sawoe, Hi-Tech, etc., were unable to handle even small portions of the\nconstruction requirements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Furthermore, it bought 1,000 trucks and tippers exclusively\nto cater to bringing aggregates, stones and sand and has set up the world\u2019s\nlargest ready-mix concrete capacity at any given location to produce ready-mix\nconcrete including 72 concrete pumps and 141 transit mixers since the annual\nconcrete manufacturing capacity in the country is inadequate. It is also\nsetting up large oxygen and acetylene plant to manufacture wielding gases since\nthe current capacity in Nigeria is inadequate and currently, 120 local\ncontractors are at the site with orders of $368 million.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Presently, Dangote Refinery is the only company in Nigeria\nhandling its engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) of the refinery.\nGlobally, with the exception of about three companies, no one has done complete\nEPC. In Nigeria, NNPC, GTL and NLNG have not done EPC. In the area of\nfertilizer production, Dangote Industries Limited is constructing a\nbreathtaking fertilizer plant. In Nigeria, the current consumption of urea is\n700,000 tons. This year, Nigeria\u2019s population was estimated at about 207 million\nwhich would lead to increased food consumption. Estimates point out that around\n5 million tonnes of fertilizers are required per year in Nigeria, in the next\nfive to seven years bifurcated into 3.5 million tonnes of urea and 1.5 million\ntonnes of NPK. The Dangote Fertilizer project is the largest granulated urea\nfertilizer complex coming up in the entire fertilizer industry in the world,\nwith an investment of $2 billion to produce 3 million tonnes per annum.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The fertilizer project alone is expected to save the country\n$500 million and provide $400 million export revenue. It is also expected to\nspur activities in the agriculture sector. The supply of fertilizer would be\nenough for the Nigerian market and neighbouring countries. For decades, Nigeria\nhas been accused of polluting the atmosphere by flaring gas while the country\nitself has been facing shortage of gas. The majority of IOCs\u2019 gas development\nin the last 10-15 years has been for the export market. The huge gas resources\nare not being developed to meet domestic demand. The government has been unable\nto attract investors and its execution model is flawed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, through Dangote\u2019s construction of the East-West\nOffshore Gas Gathering System (EWOGGS), the pipeline will solve this paradox by\nunlocking significant gas supply for industries and will considerably reduce\nflaring. Power plants, fertilizer, refinery and petrochemical projects and\nothers will benefit from it. Gas is key fuel to the federal government\u2019s\ntransformation agenda and Nigeria\u2019s economic growth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The refinery and petrochemical plant is a humoungous project\nwith a promise; one that is already creating massive jobs and opportunities for\nNigerians and putting food on the table for thousands of families. The company\nwill be a major foreign exchange earner for Nigeria. The company is partnering\nthe Lagos State government and Siemens in skills development of the local\ncommunity for employment at the construction site and has already trained and\nemployed 250 artisans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But why is the federal government, through the Nigerian\nNational Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) not taking a stake in the strategic\nproject? What about Lagos State, the host of this massive project, or any other\nstate in the federation? Is it that they can\u2019t see the vast potential here?\nHowever, I learnt the company is going to be listed on the Nigerian Stock\nExchange to give Nigerians the opportunity to be shareholders. When this is\ndone, it will by far dethrone another Dangote company, Dangote Cement from its\nposition as the biggest company by market capitalisation on the bourse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I have taken the pains to go into these details to show the\nenormity of what is at stake and also to show clearly the capacity of an\nindividual to achieve the extraordinary, even with the not-too-favourable business\nenvironment and policies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now let\u2019s go back in time: In 2007 to be precise, Dangote\nand his friend, Femi Otedola, jointly acquired the Port Harcourt and Kaduna\nrefineries for $750million towards the end of the Olusegun Obasanjo\nadministration. Immediately the late Umaru Musa Yar \u2018Adua assumed office as\npresident, vested interests who had profited from the misery of the country\nover the years and ensured that the refineries never really functioned,\ninstigated the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the public against the\ntransaction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The media was awash with all sorts of tales by moonlight,\nall in a bid to force a reversal of that transaction. Sensing the body language\nof the new administration, which was basking in public adulation led by the\nmob, Dangote and his partner dumped the refineries. The government quickly\nrefunded the $750 million they had paid. Thirteen years later, those refineries\nare in a worse state than they were then despite successive governments sinking\nhundreds of millions of dollars on their repairs and several turnaround\nmaintenance (TAM) programmes. They are not functioning and Nigeria is still\nimporting 100 per cent of its refined petroleum needs. Those who truly want\nNigeria to remain a laughing stock of the world sure know how to go about it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Dangote has since moved on. He is setting up his own brand\nnew mega refinery and petrochemical plant, the biggest in the world. While the\nsorry state of the nation\u2019s refineries continues to remind us of the tragedy of\nNigeria. It is a cruel irony that the Nigerian public is now eagerly looking\nforward to the Dangote Refinery to rescue them\/Nigeria from the organised theft\nthat has been going on for decades. How can a people be that gullible? Now, how\nmuch are those obsolete refineries worth today? Next to nothing. They are a\nmonument to waste, corruption and the failure of successive governments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Despite the massive undertaking by the Dangote Group in the\nconstruction of its refining and petrochemical complex, it is sad that the\naccess roads to the refinery are in a sorry state. The Lagos State government\nhas not seen the need to complement this prodigious project by providing good\naccess roads as well as renovating the surrounding network of roads \u2013 that are\nbound to carry increased traffic. Yet the state government is primed to reap\nbountifully through revenues from the citing of the project by way of taxes,\nlevies and other charges. The massive spin-off businesses to follow are going\nto change the face of the Lekki\/Ajah Epe axis for good.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Yet, the state government doesn\u2019t seem ready for the\nenormous business opportunities soon to turn that axis into a major industrial\nand export hub. The entire infrastructure in that axis in its current form is\nthird rate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Ajah\/Epe section remains in a pitiable, pathetic state.\nIt is a crying shame that the state government does not get it. How on earth\ncan Lagos not see what is to come and get its act together? It is not by just\ncollecting taxes from businesses. The state government must wake up from its\nslumber and upgrade the infrastructure \u2013 the roads with drainages, schools,\ngames centres, parks, provide stable electricity, pipe-borne water, hospitals,\netc., to cope with the influx of people and commercial activities that the zone\nis about to witness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Fellow Nigerians, the audacious dream of a business colossus\nand Africa\u2019s richest man, Aliko Dangote that seemed so far-fetched a few years\nago is gradually becoming a reality. The Dangote Refinery and Petrochemical\nPlant is raring to get started.<\/p>\n\n\n\n THIS REPUBLIC By Shaka Momodu, Email:\nshaka.momodu@thisdaylive.com, SMS Only: +234 811 266 1654<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" By Shaka Momodu Amid the Nigerian conundrum and the raging Covid-19 pandemic which has seized our attention is a breath of fresh air, the soon-to-be-inaugurated Dangote Petrochemical Refinery. It was Kahlil Gibran in The Garden…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1460,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[9],"tags":[385],"class_list":["post-1459","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business","tag-dangote-refinery"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/towncryyers.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/1000x-1.jpg?resize=1000%2C666&ssl=1\")
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